[The skill ‘At Death’s Door’ has been activated!]

[All stats have been permanently decreased by 15%]

A malevolent type of energy, the same as the one oozing from the scythe but stronger in potency and pressure, burst forth like an unstoppable tornado.

Even someone like Signora was rendered stiff and incapable of reacting as the black fog twisted and turned until it gave shape to a solid archaic black door.

Maniacal whispers invaded everyone’s heads, including Zeke’s, making them kneel on the grounds.

The weak-willed ones clutched their heads as they cried in pain, unable to cope with the pain and the soul-shredding whispers. However, that wasn’t even the true effect of ‘At Death’s Door’, possibly the strongest skill in Zeke’s possession.

At the cost of sacrificing his hard-earned stats, he would summon the one and only door leading to land of the dead.

While trying to keep himself together, Zeke raised his head and saw the black door slowly open, letting out a bone-chilling white mist that spread on the ground floor like water.

All sources of illumination, along with all forms of energies, were rendered obsolete as the aura of the Death Door spread in an instant.

As she as the primary target, Signora bore the brunt of it as she clawed on the ground while her body was being pulled into death’s sweet embrace.

The dread she was facing was unlike anything she had ever experienced. It made her voice turn silent and her body tremble non-stop.

Not even the fear he had felt from the Elf King compared to this one. He was literally two steps away from Death itself, showcasing to him the true potential of the Death Walker Main Path.

“Arhgh…”

Only muffled cries escaped Signora’s fully-open mouth as she tore her teary eyes from the black door pulling her closer and closer to her doom.

All the other cultists, although not directly touched by the malignant death energy, weren’t spared as their lifeless bodies were engulfed by the knee-length freezing white mist.

“Things… could have ended… differently,” Stutteringly muttered Zeke as he wiped his sweaty forehead and groaned in pain.

Having his body forcefully weakened by the System was just as excruciating as the ink fire of William Lorson. However, thanks to his high Fortitude Stats and the Pain-junkie path, the agony was significantly lessened, thus allowing Zeke to maintain his consciousness.

The three-meter tall black door was almost fully-open, which made the grotto turn into a world of darkness, dominated by innumerable whispers from beyond.

Signora’s body was but a couple of meters away, and no matter how much she struggled, she couldn’t distance free herself or resist.

She was in possession of several high-graded powerful artifacts, all of which could have killed Zeke. Alas, she got arrogant and severely underestimated him.

Eventually, half of the red-masked woman’s body was dragged into the Death Door, causing the lower part to convulse and twitch in a strange way.

Just when she was about to get sent to her grave, the effect of ‘At Death’s Door’ ended, much to Zeke’s disappointment.

In reality, he was at liberty to choose the percentage of sacrificed stats before activating the skill. He had thought 15% was largely enough, but it didn’t seem to be the case, unfortunately.

With his body tired, the youth stared at the seemingly unconscious Signora, who snapped out of it seconds after getting ejected to reality.

She let out a screech of terror then sat up, her arms shaking and her voice cracking.

“I-I’m sorry… I’m sorry! Please forgive me! Please!”

Much to his surprise, one of the high-ranking people of the Ascetic Blasphemers crawled to his feet and practically prostrated herself as she apologized non-stop.

While her body looked relatively intact, her mind was broken by what had just happened. Whatever she experienced in those few seconds she was at the other side of the Death Door had permanently changed her, though it was unknown if it was for better or worse.

“...”

Zeke was at a loss for words as she saw the previously haughty woman bang her head near his feet and apologize like a mad person.

“Enough.”

When she heard him, she stopped banging her head against the ground and just knelt there, teary-eyed and still shaking uncontrollably.

“I will not betray you… please… don’t do it again. Please…”

‘Is this the true power of a Death-walker? Or is this a special case?’

With a golden chance presented in front of him, Zeke didn’t hesitate to ask,

“Where Red Mask Fanti Fan?”

This time, Signora didn’t dodge the question or mock him. Earnestly and honestly, she instantly responded,

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

“In the Imperial Capital of the Serey Zhan Empire. He’s conducting an experiment with Red Mask Ba’al and Red Mask Zhong. The three are being monitored by White Mask Shepherd.”

“White Mask? Is that another rank below the Golden Mask?”

“Y-yes! There are a total of 10 Red Masks and 5 White Masks. But the latter are only protectors and answer directly to the Golden Mask.”

“What kind of experiments are they conducting?”

“I don’t know. Unless we’re summoned by the Golden Mask, we usually act alone and seek our own personal interests.”

Having gotten enough information, Zeke was about to finish Signora and be done with this.

Sensing her impending doom, the woman prostrated himself and desperately pleaded,

“Please don’t kill me! I don’t want to die! Please! Please! I’ll do anything… anything! Please!”

Zeke frowned and looked at the crying woman, still in disbelief that she was part of the Ascetic Blasphemers. The effect of the Death Door was way beyond his expectations.

It was unreasonable for someone to change so dramatically.

‘She’s terrified of dying. Absolutely horrified… just what did she see?’

He even considered using his Skill Point to upgrade ‘At Death’s Door’, especially after seeing how useful and powerful it was. Admittedly, the cost made it usable only in life-threatening situations, but if the result was going to be like this, then it was definitely worth the loss in stats.

“Please! I will not betray you! L-look! Look!”

She pulled her right sleeve and revealed a newly-imprinted black mark; It looked like a black burn mark of the Death Door, oozing with a bit of black fog.

As she presented the mark in front of him, Zeke felt a slight reaction from the Death Rune, and when he activated it, he saw the black fog form a straight line.

[The Death Rune has absorbed Death Energy]

[The Death Rune has formed a connection with the subject ‘Velvet Signora’]

Without her consent, Signora’s ability suddenly went out of control, engulfing her in a resplendent white light that was slowly being corrupted by the death energy.

Her hoarse cries echoed within the grotto before she slumped on the ground, gasping for breath.

[Seat of Death requirements have been met! The Death Link Num 2 has been transfused into the user ‘Velvet Signora’.]

[Establishing connection… connection established.]

[You received 10 PE]

[You received 20 EXP]

[You obtained the Survival Skill ‘Call of Loyalty’]

[Call of Loyalty(SS): Activate the link between ‘Voltage Sync, Zeke’ and ‘Seat of Death, Velvet Signora: For a limited period of time, either of the two subjects can borrow the ability of their linked partner.

All Death-walker skills will be restricted and only usable by ‘ Voltage Syn, Zeke’.

To use this skill, the two subjects must be in close proximity (50 meters or less)]

‘What? But I didn’t want this to happen!’

While gritting his teeth, Zeke looked down at the ecstatic Velvet, who quickly realized that she wasn’t going to die. In fact, despite the unbreakable connection formed between her and Zeke, she felt a strange yet exhilarating power course through her body.

“Thank you, master! Thank you! I promise I will never betray you! With Death by my side’, I will have nothing to fear!”

“Death?”

She enthusiastically nodded her pale face, which looked horrible after all the crying which ruined her make-up and made her look like a ghost.

“Yes! You are the only one who controls Death… and there’s nothing stronger than Death! Nothing!”

Her happy mood suddenly shifted as she lowered her head and rubbed her arms. It seemed she was still traumatized by what she had seen. Switching her allegiance and obeying a teenager didn’t seem wrong to her, but Zeke felt uncomfortable and unwilling to keep her alive.

He felt a slight tingle from the Death Rune again, and when he controlled it and pulled it into the intangible thread linking him to Signora, he saw her writhe on the ground while shouting.

‘At least this is useful.’

“Forgive me, master!”

The surge of agony lasted briefly, making the woman sweat profusely and prostrate herself. At Death Door had instilled a deep and immovable fear within her, so much so that would do anything to not die.

Now that he had time to deliberate on the matter, such an outcome, albeit unexpected, was still favorable to Zeke.

Red Mask Fanti Fan was his target, and based on his fight against Signora, he came to know that he lacked the strength to face his enemies. With an inside man, or woman, it would be considerably easier to track his target’s whereabouts and strike when he was ready.

“Alright, get up.”

Velvet Signora followed his words to the letter and acted like an overly obedient slave.

“Are there more of your subordinates here?”

“Three groups were dispatched in the nearby planes to abduct potential ability holders, master.”

Before he could finish, she bowed her head and, while softening her voice, proposed,

“Shall I call them back? We, the Red Masks, have this artifact.” She took out a cylindric brown object and pressed its sides, “With this, we can contact all those below us and regroup them swiftly.

“You will do that… and you will stop abducting and killing people.”

“Yes, Master. I will commence this instant!”

Soon, a connection was formed between the other similar artifact in her subordinates' possession. While resuming her authoritative voice, she commanded everyone to return to the grotto and abandon their missions.

“Is there anything else you want, Master?”

“Why were you after Silya Hext?”

“It happened before I joined the order, but the Golden Mask has found a way to steal abilities from people. There are several criteria; First, the person must be younger than 35 years old and, second, their abilities mustn't have had any kind of unforeseen mutation. Due to her ability to control the four elements, Silya Hext has been one of our primary targets for over a year.”

“Then why did you go after her now?”

“There has been word about unrest spreading across the Witch Association, Master. A man by the name of Jonathan Stellar Link invaded the Western Lands and has gotten his hands on a System. With the exception of 3 commanders overseeing the Southern Borders, all the rest were dispatched to the West.”

“Jonathan? What kind of System?”

“I apologize, Master, but I don’t know.”

“...”

“Please forgive me. If you give me some time, I can find out more.”

“Who are the other targets?”

“It is difficult to avoid the Witch Queen’s eyes, so Silya Hext was our only target here. Pirate Captain George is our second target, but it has been difficult to ascertain his whereabouts. The third and last target is a vagabond named Frederic Whitefort. He’s been last sighted in the Nezulian Republic, precisely in the Sunken Metropolis.”

“A vagabond? Who, amongst your high-ranked colleagues, is hiding or managing the affairs in the Sunken Metropolis?”

“Currently, Red Mask Viper is there. We also have spies in Erys and the Department of Defense.”

“Alright. You will write their name and positions to me.”

“Yes, Master. I will tell you their abilities. If you desire it, I can hunt them down and bring you their heads!”